Guam Memorial Hospital Authority

In 1964, the Guam Memorial Hospital was established as a line agency of the Government of Guam's executive branch. This creation separated the administration of hospital services from community health services provided by the Department of Public Health and Welfare. Thirteen years later in 1977, the Guam Memorial Hospital Authority was created as a public corporation, and has since been operating as a governmental, nonprofit institution serving the people of Guam under the governance of a nine-member Board of Trustees. In 1974, the local and federal government's plans to replace the rapidly deteriorating Guam Memorial Hospital facility began to take root. The U.S. Department of the Interior purchased and transferred the nearby Medical Center of the Marianas to the Government of Guam, to serve as the new Guam Memorial Hospital. The Medical Center of the Marianas facility was initially constructed by the Catholic Diocese to serve as a private maternal-child health facility. Financial difficulties, however, prompted the Diocese to consider the sale of the facility to meet the government's need to replace its old facility at Oka Point. Along with the funds for the initial purchase of this facility, federal funds also were provided for the expansion of the facility to allow for the consolidation of all services on a single campus. Relocated to the new facility by 1978 were all the acute care hospital services and the Skilled Nursing Unit in 1987. In 1996, GMHA completed construction of its Skilled Nursing Facility in Barrigada Heights, with a capacity of 60 long-term care beds. In 2010 Guam Memorial Hospital received full accreditation by The Joint Commission, a nonprofit organization that accredits hospitals worldwide. GMH lost its accreditation in the early 1980s. The accreditation does not include the off-site Skilled Nursing Facility, which as a long-term care program falls under separate accreditation guidelines.